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Contents Vol.29, No.5; May 2016 SILICON CHIP www.siliconchip.com.au Features 16 Atmospheric Electricity: Nature’s Spectacular Fireworks If you think about nature’s electrical fireworks, lightning and the auroras at the poles immediately come to mind. But now we can see that what happens out in space is vastly more spectacular – by Dr David Maddison 32 How To Convert Analog Video Tapes To Digital Format Do you have family videos stored on VHS, Beta or Super 8 video tapes? If so, now is the time to convert them to digital format and save then on DVDs or a computer hard drive, before they become unplayable – by Greg Swain 46 USB Cameras: Use Them With Your Smartphone USB cameras are normally intended for use with a laptop PC. But if you are trying to poke a USB pipe inspection camera down a blocked drain, you don’t want it to be hooked up to a laptop – it’s too awkward. The solution: use your smartphone and an app like CameraFi – by Leo Simpson Converting Analog Video Tapes To Digital Format – Page 32. Pro jects To Build 36 Budget Senator 2-Way Loudspeaker System Did you lust after the Senator loudspeakers described in the September 2015 issue? They were undeniably expensive but now there is money to be saved by employing a lower cost woofer and tweeter from Altronics. You can also save money by building your own cabinets – by Allan Linton-Smith 64 230/115VAC, 50/60Hz Precision Turntable Driver This unit can be used to drive belt-drive or idler-driven turntables at a nominal 230VAC 50Hz or 115VAC 60Hz. As a bonus, the turntable speed is capable of being adjusted over a range of ±12%, which is great for music teaching applications – by John Clarke 74 4-Input Temperature Sensor PCB For The Raspberry Pi This simple PCB plugs into your Raspberry Pi’s GPIO port and makes it easy to connect up to four Dallas DS18B20 1-Wire digital temperature sensors. It also features four matching outputs that can be activated in response to temperature – by Nicholas Vinen & Greg Swain Budget Senator 2-Way Loudspeakers – Page 36. 82 Arduino-Based Multifunction Measuring Meter, Pt.2 Pt.2 this month describes how to install the software and firmware that’s needed to control the MFM from a desktop or laptop PC. We also give the calibration procedure and describe how to use the unit – by Jim Rowe Special Columns 57 Serviceman’s Log Repairing a Yamaha electric piano – by Dave Thompson 78 Circuit Notebook (1) Micromite-Based Stove Left On Reminder; (2) Relay Circuit For Cars With Hydraulic Brake Switches; (3) Isolated Line Connection For Laptop To Amplifier; (4) Test & Label Those Plugpacks; (5) ESR Meter With LCD Readout 230V/115VAC, 50/60Hz Precision Turntable Driver – Page 64. 4-Input Temperature Sensor PCB For The Raspberry Pi – Page 74. 90 Vintage Radio The 1948 AWA model 517M mantel radio – by Professor Graham Parslow Departments 2 Publisher’s Letter  98   4 Mailbag 103 siliconchip.com.au 88 Product Showcase 104 96 SC Online Shop 104 Ask Silicon Chip Market Centre Advertising Index Notes & Errata May 2016  1